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TEXT, VIVIAN KELLYImages of current collection, courtesy of LaForce + StevensThis year, indulge your old Skool tendencies, and celebrate the Fourth of July American Style, with a pair Top-Siders on your feet. Back in the Seventies, in Junior High, you were a NOBODY if you didn’t own either a pair of Top or Dock Siders. There was a mini-rivalry between the Top [round toe] and the Dock [Square toe]. Most went with Top-Siders.I’ve still got a pair in my closet in the classic chestnut brown because they’re as comfy as a pair of well-worn slippers. Never mind that I haven’t pulled on a sail or acted as dead weight on a Hobie Cat for decades.Just because they’re “iconic” does not mean that these shoes have been relegated to museum status, like John Travolta’s ‘Saturday Night Fever’ wide lapelled white suit. To the contrary, this is a brand that continues to keep on going strong. Five years ago, I spent the 4th with a college gal-pal at Tulsa’s Cherokee Yacht Club. Every guy there was wearing Top-Siders and they didn’t look like they had stepped back into a time capsule – at all.When I got back home to CT, I went to www.sperrytopsider.com, and put in an order for the brown pair I wear on “just kicking around the house” days.My only regret – I’m dying for the Hermes orange ones I don’t currently own. I’ve got a bet with myself. If the Nederlands win the FIFA 2011 World Cup Games, I’m logging on again and ordering the orange pair.

Sperry Top-Sider is an icon of American fashion and a summer wardrobe staple. The makers of the classic boat shoe have been outfitting Americans since 1935.